Automatic toilet installation

ABSTRACT

An automatic toilet installation comprising switch means arranged below the toilet seat to produce operation of an exhaust fan system for exhausting air from the toilet bowl, and of means for spraying water in the toilet bowl in response to pressure exerted on the toilet seat by a person sitting thereon, and for operation of flushing means and a perfume atomizer in response to release of said pressure, and means arranged below a platform surrounding the base of the toilet bowl so that as said platform is depressed the lid of the toilet bowl is automatically opened.

1 States atent 1 1 amaze Bondonio May 29, 1973 [5 AUTOMATIC TOILET INSTALLATION 3,154,793 11/1964 Congdon.... ..4/7 [76] Inventor: Ernesto Bondonio, Via Michele Les- Z i liefaburaw 89 Torino Ital 1 opp 1 i 3,247,524 4/1966 Umann... ..4 7 22 Filed: 4 1g72 3,295,147 1/1967 Meyer.... .....4/2l3 3,335,431 8/1967 Coates .4/2l3 [21] Appl. NO.: 225,975 3,366,979 2/1968 Johnston ..4/213 Primary Examiner-Henry K. Artis [30] Foreign Appl cation Priority Data An0mey Emest A Greenside Feb. 25, 1971 Italy ..67657 A/71 Feb. 8, 1972 Italy ..6737l A/72 [57] ABSTRACT An automatic toilet installation comprising switch [52] U.S. Cl. MHZ/138714 72 4 9, means arranged below the toilet Seat to produce operation of an exhaust fan system for exhausting air 2; 9/04 and 1 2 r from the toilet bowl, and of means for spraying water 1 1 1 1 in the toilet bowl in response to pressure exerted on I 6 the toilet seat by a person sitting thereon, and for operation of flushing means and a perfume atomizer in response to release of said pressure, and means ar- [56] References cued ranged below a platform surrounding the base of the UNITED STATES PATENTS toilet bowl so that as said platform is depressed the lid of the toilet bowl is automatically opened. 2,619,655 12/1952 Huff ..4/2l3 3,134,986 6/1964 Galhar ..4/249 7 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEU MY 2 9 I975 SHEET 1 [IF 4 PATENTEL, MAY 2 91975 SHEET 2 U? 4 FIG.2

FIG.3

PATENTED NAY29|975 3 735,429

' SHEET U 0F 4 FIG.4

1 AUTOMATIC TOILET INSTALLATION This invention relates to an automatic toilet installation.

It is known that at present there is a widespread tendency of rationalizing and automating household applyances to render them more easy to handle, comfortable or hygienic.

The present invention aims at rendering more hygienic and functional a toilet installation and for this purpose provides an automatic toilet installation which essentially comprises:

a lever system connected to the lid of the toilet seat and to a platfonn arranged at the basis of the toilet bowl so that when a person steps on the platform the lid is opened and moves from a horizontal to a vertical position;

an electric switch and a valve located below the toilet seat and controlled by the weight of the person sitting thereon to operate an exhaust fan system to exhaust air from the upper portion of the toilet bowl and to supply a screen of water sprayed only in the upper portion of the toilet bowl;

an electric remote control device actuated by the movement of the toilet seat as the person who was sitting thereon is leaving io to discharge the water from a water reservoir to flush the toilet bowl;

the lever system being connected to the lid of the toilet seat and to the platform so that when a person is leaving the platform the lid closes and moves from the vertical to the horizontal positon;

a pair of armrests pivotally mounted on a wall behind the toilet bowl so that they can be used, if desired, or tilted into a rest position when they are not desired to be used, and known means for automating the movement of the members described above.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the lid of the toilet seat is electrically connected to a microswitch located below the platform at the basis of the toilet bowl and the lifting and lowering movement of the lid is controlled by a motor with reduction gear arranged laterally behind the toilet bowl and coupled to the lid by means of a toothed coupling; a microswitch having two operative positions is arranged below the toilet seat to actuate in its first operative position the exhaust fan system in the interior of the toilet bowl and to produce the screen of sprayed water; in its second operative position the microswitch actuates an atomizer, for example for spraying perfume, connected to a time delay switch, and the means for flushing the toilet bowl; the first operative position of the microswitch being produced by depressing its actuating button as the person who wants to use the toilet sits down on the toilet seat while the second operative position of the microswitch is produced by removal of the weight of the toilet user as the latter is leaving the toilet seat; actuation of the microswitch located below the platform and producing the lifting and lowering of the lid being effected by the weight of the person who steps on or from the platform; mechanical control means, for example a pedal, being provided for lifting and lowering the lid in addition to or in substitution of the electrical control means.

In another modified embodiment of the invenn'on the lid of the toilet seat is made of two halves opening along a central longitudinal line by a translating movement normal to said line and carried out synchronously for the two halves, closing of the lid being effected by moving the lid halves toward each other.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an automatic toilet installation as proposed by the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the toilet bowl in the installation of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of FIG. 1, and

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a modification of the automatic toilet installation of FIG. ll.

Referring now more particularly to FIG. I, an automatic toilet installation according to the invention comprises a toilet bowl 1 surrounded by a rug 2 covering a platform 8 (FIG. 2) connected by a lever system (not shown) to a lid 3 of a toilet seat 4 so that when a person steps on the rug 2 the platform 8 thereunder is depressed against the acn'on of spring means (not shown) which normally keep the platform 8 in an elevated position, and the lever system is actuated to cause opening of the lid 3 which moves from a horizontal position to the substantially vertical position shown in FIG. 1.

An electric switch and a valve are arranged below the toilet seat 4 to close or open, respectively, under the weight of the person on the seat 4 and actuate an exhaust fan system 13 (FIG. 2) to exhaust air from the upper portion of the toilet bowl 1 and spray a screen of waxter 14 into said upper portion of the bowl.

An electric remote control device is provided to remove the water from the bowl 1, this remote control device being actuated by the movement of the toilet seat 4 when pressure is removed therefrom as the person leaves the seat 4.

Said lever system is so arranged that when the person leaves the platform 8 the lid 3 is closed, i.e. moves from the vertical to the horizontal position.

A pair of armrests 5 are pivotally mounted on a wall 6 behind the toilet bowl 1 so that they can be moved from the horizontal position shown in full lines in FIG. 1 to the substantially vertical position shown in dash lines in FIG. 1 when thy are not desired to be used.

FIGS. 2 snd 3 show some details of a preferred embodiment of the automatic toilet installation and its component parts which hitherto have only been recited generally. In this embodiment there is provided automatic control means for controlling the lifting and lowering movements of the lid 3 in the form of a microswitch 7 located below the platform 8 and electrically connected to a motor with reduction gear 9 by means of cables 10 passing at 11.

The motor and reduction gear 9 are arranged laterally behind the toilet bowl 1 and the reduction gear 9 is provided with gear means meshing with a toothed segment 12 on the rear portion of the lid 3 to permit the latter to be lifted an lowered.

Actuation of the microswitch 7 is produced by the weight of the person who steps on or from the platform 8 located below the rug 2.

The exhaust fan system 13 and screen of sprayed water 14 are provided with control means in the form of a microswitch 15 having two operative positions and arranged below the toilet seat 4. In the first operative position of the microswitch 15 the exhaust fan system 13 is actuated and the screen of sprayed water 14 produced due to the pressure exerted on the microswitch when a person sits down on the seat 4. In the second operative position of the microswitch 15 an atomizer 16, for example for spraying perfume, is actuated and a water reservoir 17 emptied when pressure on the microswitch 15 is released as the person rises from the toilet seat 4. An appropriate time delay switch (not shown) is provided to stop the atomizer 16 after a predetermined period of time.

Manually operated control means are also provided for lifting and lowering the lid 3 to permit the latter to be actuated by hand or assist the action of the motor with reduction gear 9. As shown in FIG. 4, such control means may comprise, for example, a pedal 18 connected by a lever system (not shown) to the lid 3.

FIG. 4 shows a modification of the automatic toilet installation of FIG. 1. In this modified embodiment the lid 3 of the toilet bowl 1 of FIG. 1 is replaced by a lid 19 of a toilet bowl 22, the difference in costruction being that the lid 19 is made of two halves separable along a central medium line 20 by a translating movement normal to said line 20 and carried out synchronously for the two halves. The lid 19 is arranged below a toil seat 21 which serves as guide means for the translating movement of the lid 19 in opening and closing the opening of the toilet bowl 22.

For closing the lid 19 its two halves are moved toward each other.

FIG. 4 also shows another modification which consists in that the screen of sprayed water 14 produced by the operation of the microswitch 15 in its first operative position is produced in the front portion of the toilet bowl 22. Further, in this modified embodiment the toilet bowl 22 is firmly secured to a rear wall 23 to which the upwardly tiltable armrests 5 are pivotally connected whereas in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 3 they are mounted on the stationary wall 6.

A main switch may be provided to permit the entire electric installation to be de-energized.

Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been described herein in detail and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise embodiment and that numerous changes and modifications may be made therein, in addition to those described above, without departing from the scope of the invention.

1 claim:

1. An automatic toilet installation comprising a toilet bowl;

a toilet seat on the toilet bowl;

a lid movably mounted on the toilet seat;

a platform vertically movably mounted adjacent the toilet bowl;

a lever system connected between said platform and said lid so that when a person steps on said platform said lid will move from a toilet bowl closing to a toilet bowl opening position and from the toilet bowl opening to the toilet bowl closing position when said person steps from said platform;

an exhaust fan system for exhausting the air from the upper portion of said toilet bowl;

means for spraying a screen of water only in the upper portion of said toilet bowl;

valve means below said toilet seat for operating said water spraying means;

switch means below said toilet seat for operating said exhaust fan system and said valve means in response to the weight of a person seated on said toilet seat;

a water reservoir with exhaust valve for flushing said toilet bowl; an electric remote control device for actuating said exhaust valve in response to movement of said toilet seat as said person leaves the toilet seat;

a pair of armrests pivoltally mounted on a wall behind said toilet bowl so that they can be moved between a position for supporting the arms of said person seated on said toilet seat and a rest position in which they extend substantially vertically, and known means for automation and synchronization of the means and members mentioned above.

2. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a motor with reduction gear arranged laterally behind said toilet bowl and provided with gear means meshing with a toothed segment on the rear portion of said lid, switch means below said platform to actuate said motor with reduction gear in response to the downward movement of said platform produced by the weight of a person stepping thereon to produce automatic lifting and lowering of said lid in response to the movement of said platform.

3. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein further a perfume atomizer provided with a time delay switch is provided and said switch means arranged below said toilet seat is formed by a microswitch having a first and a second operative position, said first operative position actuating said exhaust fan system and said means for spraying a screen of water, said second operative position actuating said perfume atomizer and said exhaust valve of said water reservoir, said first operative position of said microswitch being produced by the weight exerted on said toilet seat when a person sits thereon, said second operative position of said microswitch being produced by the removal of said weight as said person leaves said toilet seat.

4. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, further comprising manually operable control means for lifting and lowering said lid.

5. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 4, wherein said manually operable control means is formed by a pedal connected through a lever system to said lid.

6. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein said lid is made of two halves separated along a longitudinal central line and arranged to move normal to said line away from and toward said line.

7. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein a main switch is provided to permit the entire electric installation to be de-energized.

* it k 

1. An automatic toilet installation comprising a toilet bowl; a toilet seat on the toilet bowl; a lid movably mounted on the toilet seat; a platform vertically movably mounted adjacent the toilet bowl; a lever system connected between said platform and said lid so that when a person steps on said platform said lid will move from a toilet bowl closing to a toilet bowl opening position and from the toilet bowl opening to the toilet bowl closing position when said person steps from said platform; an exhaust fan system for exhausting the air from the upper portion of said toilet bowl; means for spraying a screen of water only in the upper portion of said toilet bowl; valve means below said toilet seat for operating said water spraying means; switch means below said toilet seat for operating said exhaust fan system and said valve means in response to the weight of a person seated on said toilet seat; a water reservoir with exhaust valve for flushing said toilet bowl; an electric remote control device for actuating said exhaust valve in response to movement of said toilet seat as said person leaves the toilet seat; a pair of armrests pivoltally mounted on a wall behind said toilet bowl so that they can be moved between a position for supporting the arms of said person seated on said toilet seat and a rest position in which they extend substantially vertically, and known means for automation and synchronization of the means and members mentioned above.
 2. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a motor with reduction gear arranged laterally behind said toileT bowl and provided with gear means meshing with a toothed segment on the rear portion of said lid, switch means below said platform to actuate said motor with reduction gear in response to the downward movement of said platform produced by the weight of a person stepping thereon to produce automatic lifting and lowering of said lid in response to the movement of said platform.
 3. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein further a perfume atomizer provided with a time delay switch is provided and said switch means arranged below said toilet seat is formed by a microswitch having a first and a second operative position, said first operative position actuating said exhaust fan system and said means for spraying a screen of water, said second operative position actuating said perfume atomizer and said exhaust valve of said water reservoir, said first operative position of said microswitch being produced by the weight exerted on said toilet seat when a person sits thereon, said second operative position of said microswitch being produced by the removal of said weight as said person leaves said toilet seat.
 4. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, further comprising manually operable control means for lifting and lowering said lid.
 5. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 4, wherein said manually operable control means is formed by a pedal connected through a lever system to said lid.
 6. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein said lid is made of two halves separated along a longitudinal central line and arranged to move normal to said line away from and toward said line.
 7. An automatic toilet installation as claimed in claim 1, wherein a main switch is provided to permit the entire electric installation to be de-energized. 